Tag Archives: Traffic Law

Post navigation

Cannabis Use in Vehicles

Effective January 1, 2018, the California vehicle code has been updated to make it illegal to smoke or ingest marijuana or any marijuana product when driving or riding as a passenger in a vehicle. Drugged driving laws have been in place for many years, but this law specifically addresses the use of cannabis products while driving.

Marijuana and driving don’t mix. According to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), marijuana negatively affects a number of skills required for safe driving, such as slow reaction time and your ability to make decisions. The California Office of Traffic Safety states that the effects of marijuana are strongest during the first hour of use and driving right after using marijuana could double your risk of being in a crash. The National Institute on Drug Abuse also notes that after alcohol, marijuana is the drug most often found in the blood of drivers involved in crashes.

So please remember, driving under the influence of drugs, even legal drugs, is not only unsafe, but is also a crime.

No time to read a long-winded BLOnG? Welcome to the Three-Second-Stop mini-Blog.

Today’s Three Seconds: California AB 1785 Effective Jan. 1, 2017

Beginning today, the rules as to how drivers can use a smartphone and other handheld devices just got a whole lot stricter. Besides not being able to write or read texts by hand, it is now illegal to “hold and operate” a handheld wireless telephone or electronic communications device for any reason while driving. Bottom line: If a driver in CA still wants to use a phone while driving, they can’t be holding it in-hand. Now the device must be mounted or affixed to the vehicle’s windshield, dashboard or center console without obstructing the view of the road, and the driver may only use a single swipe or tap of the finger to operate a function or feature on the device.

Note: This new law does not apply to manufacturer-installed systems that are embedded in a vehicle.

Child Passenger Restraints

January 1st, 2017 ushers in new laws and regulations. In California one new law affecting motorist and parents will require child passengers under the age of two to be secured in rear-facing child safety seats.

Transporting children in age- and size-appropriate car seats, booster seats, or seat belts is key to keeping kids safe on the road. According to National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), child safety seats lower the risk of fatal injury for infants (under 1 year old) by 71% and by 54% for toddlers (1 to 4 years old) in passenger cars.

NHTSA recommends using a Rear-Facing Car Seat for as long as possible: age 0 to 3 years or once your child outgrows the rear-facing car seat. Rear-facing seats are the safest way to transport a child as in a crash the impact force is more evenly distributed along the outer shell of the seat, keeping the child’s neck and spine in line.

Be sure to read the instruction manual for your child safety seat as well as your vehicle owner’s manual on car seat installation. Check height and weight limits of the car seat and never place a rear-facing car seat in the front seat or in front of an active airbag.

How Do You Rate?

Seat belt use in the United States has been steadily rising since 2000. There has also been a consistent decrease in unrestrained passenger vehicle occupant fatalities in the daytime.

The overall National average seat-belt use in 2015 was 88.5%. The Western States have the highest average with 95.0% and the Midwest has a ways to go coming in at 81.7%.

As you can image, States that have Primary Seat Belt laws (an officer can ticket you for the sole reason you are not wearing a seat-belt) have a higher rate of seat belt use as compared to States that have secondary enforcement laws (requires an officer to pull you over for another reason before you can receive a citation for not using your seat belt.)

No time to read a long-winded BLOnG? Welcome to the Three-Second-Stop mini-Blog.

Today’s Three Seconds: Traffic Signal Blackout

If a power outage occurs and all the traffic signals are not working properly, proceed with caution and handle the intersection as you would an intersection with All-Way STOP signs. Remember your right of way protocol. If you and another vehicle on a cross street arrive at the intersection at the same time, then the vehicle on the left must let the vehicle to the immediate right go first.

Basic Speed Law

Driving is fast paced. There is a lot going on around your vehicle that needs to be taken into account. That’s why speed limits are important. They tell us a safe speed to travel at in a given area. However, sometimes even the posted speed limit is not safe. This is where the Basic Speed Law comes into effect. The Basic Speed Law tells us to not drive faster than is reasonable and prudent under the current conditions. That means you need to take into account everything going on in your driving environment and decide what the safest speed is. Otherwise, you could find yourself with a ticket.

When determining what a safe speed should be, some things to consider are:

How’s the weather? Is it a clear day? Is it raining?

What time of day is it? Is it daytime or nighttime?

How’s the flow of traffic? Is there traffic congestion?

Are there pedestrians? Is there a lot of foot traffic or children playing nearby?

No time to read a long-winded BLOnG? Welcome to the Three-Second-Stop mini-Blog.

Today’s Three Seconds: Turn Lane Selection

Part of making a legal and safe turn is ending the turn in the correct lane.

If you are making a right turn, start the turn in the right-most lane and stay in the right lane until you have finished your turn.

If you are making a left turn, start the turn in the left-most lane. You may turn into any available lane if it is safe to do so, but note, if vehicles are also turning right onto the same road, they have the right-of-way into their corresponding lanes.

No time to read a long-winded BLOnG? Welcome to the Three-Second-Stop mini-Blog.

Today’s Three Seconds: Gridlock

Driving in the city has many hazards including traffic. Heavy traffic can lead to gridlocked intersections. As frustrating and tedious as it is to have a green light and no room to move, remember that legally you cannot enter an intersection if you are not able to completely cross before the light turns red. In other words, being stopped in an intersection is a big no-no. The best thing to do in this situation is stay calm and wait your turn safely behind the crosswalk.

No time to read a long-winded BLOnG? Welcome to the Three-Second-Stop mini-Blog.

Today’s Three Seconds: Emergency Vehicles

When an emergency vehicle is approaching with its siren blaring and at least one red light flashing, you must pull over to the right and stop. Just remember to never stop in an intersection. If you are already in the intersection, continue through the intersection and drive to the right as soon as it is safe and stop. If the road is so full that you cannot pull to the right, then you should just stop where you are. The emergency vehicle will go around you.